Operations Management Technology Graduate Degree

The purpose of the Master of Science in Management of Technology (MS-MOT) program option is to prepare graduates of the program for leadership roles in technology-driven organizations, whether private or public, and to improve the leadership skills of technically proficient professionals to allow them to successfully transition into leadership positions in their field of expertise and to allow them to move into a general leadership role outside their area of technical expertise as their career grows.

This program option is open to individuals with a technical undergraduate degree who wish to develop their leadership/management skills to complement their technical expertise. The set of courses the student takes are tailored to the needs of the student while insuring that the leadership/management basics are acquired. Recommended courses in a student's program of study typically include:

• OMT 502 – Financial Management
• OMT 520 – Strategic Management of Technology
• OMT 560 – Managerial Decision Making
• OMT 570 – Advanced Project Management
• OMT 598 – ST: Seminar in Management of Technology
• OMT 549 - Research Techniques and Applications
• TMC 593 – Applied Project or TMC 599 – Thesis

The ability to budget, justify/evaluate projects, and ensure the financial health of an organization (public or private) are key skills required of managers at all levels and become more critical as practitioners advance in their careers. The ability to successfully manage in the rapidly changing global economy is also a key skill. Good decision making is essential at all levels but becomes even more apparent as individuals advance in their careers. Since much of what we do as leaders/managers is to manage change, a skill of critical importance is project management. The above courses address this critical skill set for technical managers.

As an MS degree it is expected that graduates of the program (and especially those of this option), possess skills in research and the ability to apply these research skills in practice. To achieve this goal each student completes a course in research techniques (OMT 549) and either an applied project (TMC 593) or a thesis (TMC 599).

Additionally, each student takes four courses (12 semester hours) from the following list:

• OMT 503 - Marketing Management
• OMT 504 – Law and Ethics for Technical Professionals
• OMT 540 - International Management
• OMT 548 – Statistical Methods for Research
• OMT 550 – Industrial Training and Development
• OMT 552 – Global Management Philosophies
• OMT 592 – Research (1-3 credits)
• TMC 584 – Internship (1-3 credits)
• OMT 598 – ST: Forecasting and Evolution of Technology
• OMT 598 – ST: Simulation of Operations
• OMT 598 – ST: Advanced Quality Topics
• OMT 598 – ST: Advanced Operations Topics
• Graduate courses from other majors with approval of student's graduate advisory committee

These additional courses are selected to support the individual career goals and perceived needs. If selecting the thesis option, these courses are selected to support the student's research topic and research methods. To ensure that all courses taken will fit into their personal plan of study, all students are expected to discuss their tentative plan with their program advisor prior to registering for their first class, and must have an approved plan of study on file by the completion of nine (9) semester hours toward the degree.

Students without a statistics course at the undergraduate level will be required to complete an appropriate course their first semester in the program. This course will be in addition to the other requirements for the degree. Additional courses may be required to fulfill deficiencies, based on review of transcripts. Please contact the department for more information.

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